disciplinary information held by certain professional organisations (including teachers, child care licensees and foster carers), and

information that the Police Commissioner provides in relation to police investigations into allegations of serious child-related sexual offences, even if no charges were laid.

Deciding who is eligible to work with children

When making a decision about an application, the welfare and best interests of a child are the paramount consideration. The Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) Act 2000 (the Act) outlines strict guidelines that must be followed before issuing a blue card or a positive exemption notice.

If an applicant has no known police or disciplinary information, a positive notice and card will be issued.

If there is police or disciplinary information that does not automatically disqualify someone from working in regulated employment, the chief executive will consider:

whether there are charges or convictions

whether the offence committed or alleged to have been committed is a serious offence or a disqualifying offence as defined by the Act

when the offence was committed or was alleged to have been committed

the nature of the offence and its relevance to working with children and young people

in the case of a conviction – the penalty imposed by the court and any reasons given if the court made no imprisonment order or no order disqualifying the person from holding or applying for a blue card, and

any other relevant information relating to the offence or alleged offence.

Making submissions

If a person’s police information suggests that they are unable to protect a child from harm and promote the child's wellbeing, the chief executive will ask them to provide a submission on any police or disciplinary information held about them, explaining why they should not be refused a blue card.

The chief executive assesses the submission, any references or other relevant material provided, the nature of the offence/s and the circumstances surrounding the case before making a final decision.

You can find out more information on how decisions are made about a person’s eligibility to obtain a blue card by accessing the relevant Guidelines (PDF 579KB).

Last Updated: 29 November, 2017

Making a submission

If there is police or disciplinary information about a cardholder/applicant that must be taken into consideration when deciding if someone is eligible to work with children, then the cardholder/applicant may be invited to make a submission, allowing them to provide any additional information, character references and anything else that is relevant.